I've ridden and owned both a Dahon Hon Solo and a Brompton. The wheels are larger on the HS and that gave it a bit of a smoother, more normal-feeling ride. That's not to say the Brompton doesn't ride as well just that it has its own feel and characteristics. I actually find the Brompton more fun to ride after getting used to it. It has a certain zippiness that is hard to explain. The Brompton also seems much higher quality than the HS. While some of the components and frame construction methods seem antiquated, they look/feel/ seem like they are done to a higher standard. The Brompton is also much beefier than the HS- the frame tubes are much, much thicker and the extended steering column has little to no flex. The HS frame feels solid but I always found a fair amount of flex in the steering column. And the Brompton folds much, much smaller. Overall, I liked the HS but ended up riding it very little, "borrowed" a few parts off it over the years, and eventually sold it to a list member ;)
Conclusion: I don't know if there is anything you can do on a Brompton that you can't do on the HS. And I'm not sure the quality difference is meaningful in any way (unless the flex bothers you) BUT the Brompton just has something semi-magical about it-- something intangible that makes me not just like it or tolerate it but LOVE it. I've owned quite a few small wheeled bikes and liked none of them as much as the Brompton. It is a silly, ridiculous looking contraption but one that I find hard not to love. Apologies for any typos as I typed this quickly on my phone. Cheers! Chris -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
